Associate Director - Qualitative Research

PF Global; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 62,000 - 75,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Bonus programme

5% pension contribution

25 days annual leave

Private healthcare

Job summary

PF Global in London is seeking an Associate Director for Qualitative Research to lead a high‑performing team and shape the strategy of the qualitative function within a growing organisation. You will own and deliver fast-paced projects, travel across the UK and internationally for on‑the‑ground insights, manage client relationships, and work with senior journalists to place findings in the media.

The role offers senior leadership, opportunities for progression, and a strong focus on opinion

Qualifications

• 7+ years in public opinion or social research.
• Strong understanding of UK politics and policy.
• Extensive experience moderating focus groups and depth interviews.

Responsibilities

• Oversee a varied portfolio of qualitative projects and advise clients.
• Lead research design, discussion guides, and final reports.
• Moderate focus groups and immersive research across the country and beyond.
• Help shape direction of the qualitative team and growth opportunities.
• Develop junior team members and ensure high-quality fieldwork.

Skills

Public opinion

Qualitative research

Leadership

UK politics

Moderation

Job description

About PF Global

PF Global gives advice built on deep sector expertise, underpinned by global opinion and economic research, so you can win the arguments that will decide your future.

We are oriented around the debates that will matter most to the future, where the intersection of policy, politics, and regulation will decide what happens. We will tell you honestly what is politically possible (and what is not) and then help make your case by building the research, the story and the campaign that goes with it.

You’ll work alongside colleagues with diverse skills, gain exposure to senior clients, and have real opportunities to develop your career as part of our ambitious and supportive team.

About the role

The Research and Insights team at PF Global is expanding, and we have an opportunity to join in a senior role as Associate Director for Qualitative Research. This is a unique role in an impactful organisation where you will have the freedom to explore your interests, and have a real impact on the direction and strategy of the qualitative team and wider company.

The opportunity would suit someone who is passionate about the role opinion research plays in policy design and politics, and enjoys owning and delivering fast-paced projects. They will be excited by the prospect of spending time on the ground, travelling across the UK and internationally to find out what a certain town or group of voters thinks about a policy problem. We are looking for someone entrepreneurial, who wants to help build and lead a high-performing team in a growing organisation.

The role would also include a significant amount of media work. PF Global’s research is consistently in the news and our team plays a key role in driving this. The right person will have a strong understanding of UK politics (US is a bonus), and relish the opportunity to see their work appearing in the press.

The company and our research team have grown considerably in recent years. You’ll grow with them, with clear opportunities for progression for the right person.

Opinion research is at the heart of everything we do, and our research covers a huge variety of topics. In the last year alone, the qualitative team has:

• Conducted more than 40 immersive research projects across the UK and more than a dozen other countries, on topics from opposition to datacentres, to how social media drives local economies, to whether Remembrance Day still holds an important role in today’s society.
• Seen its research used far and wide, from front-page media coverage to hard-hitting reports referenced across policymaking.
• Carried out focus groups and immersives for national publications such as The Times, The Guardian, The Economist and The Telegraph, on political issues including changes to the triple lock and votes at 16.

What you will do

• Oversee a varied portfolio of qualitative research projects across many topics, acting as a trusted advisor to clients. Some will be standalone, others part of wider projects with our policy, economics and polling teams.
• Take a hands-on leadership approach; be heavily involved in research design, discussion guide writing, and the analysis and write-up through to the final report.
• Moderate focus groups, immersive research projects and depth interviews, both online and in person across the country. You can expect a significant amount of domestic travel, and likely international travel too.
• Help shape the direction of the qualitative team, from new business opportunities and innovation in our offering to team growth and hiring.
• Manage and develop junior members of the team, supporting their training and professional development and quality-assuring their fieldwork and outputs.
• Oversee how qualitative research is organised across the company, from focus group recruitment and immersive planning to team processes.

What we are looking for

• Typically 7+ years of experience in public opinion or social research, ideally with a focus on public policy, politics or public attitudes, but we care more about what you’ve done than how long you’ve been doing it, and we’d welcome candidates from a highly relevant political, journalism or campaigns background.
• A strong understanding of UK politics. You don’t need to know who the shadow cabinet are; we are much more interested in whether you can spot if a proposed policy will go down terribly with a particular voting coalition, or what will excite a journalist.
• Extensive experience moderating focus groups and depth interviews with a wide range of audiences, and a confident, engaging moderating style.
• A keen interest in research design, and particularly in writing discussion guides that avoid bias and get to the heart of an issue.
• A knack for clearly explaining research findings, and very strong writing skills. You might have experience writing up research for media, academic journals or public-facing reports. You will be confident working with senior journalists and clients on tight deadlines.
• Impeccable project and client management. You are able to hit the ground running, take over large accounts, communicate clearly with clients and manage complex workstreams to budget and timelines. It is not unusual for our small team to have to be managing fieldwork in Southend and Savannah at the same time.

Location and Salary

We operate a hybrid working model, with a mix of home and office working. Our main office is based in Embankment (London). Many of us, including the founders, have young children and we work hard to be genuinely family-friendly.

For this role we expect salary to range from £62,000 to £75,000, depending on candidate experience.

We also offer a bonus programme, 5% pension contribution, 25 days annual leave, and private healthcare.

We are committed to equality, diversity and inclusion, and particularly encourage applications from candidates with disabilities and candidates from ethnic minority backgrounds.